Chapter
16:
Punctuation:
Commas
Are
Our
Friends
213
The
Semicolon:
Love Child of the Comma
and the Period
People are irrationally
frightened
of
semicolons.
I
can understand being terrified of
your
mother
and Pee Wee Herman,
but
semicolons? Pleeeze. These little
guys
wouldn't
hurt
a
flea, even
if
they fell
on it.

•
Use
a
semicolon
between
closely related independent clauses.
Example:
Bigamy
is one wife
too
many; monogamy is
the
same idea.
•
Use
a
semicolon
between
main clauses when
the
coordinating conjunction has
been left
out.
Example:
She planned
to
dye
her
hair purple; however,
the

store was
out
of
grape
Jell-O
so she decided
to
pierce her navel instead.
•
Use
a
semicolon
to
join independent clauses when one
or
both
clauses contains
a
comma.
Example:
After
the
sheep was cloned,
the
cows tried calling
the
tabloids;
but
they
didn't get through.

pie:
We
read
"Tell-Tale
Heart";
Example:
Cloning sheep
is a
good
j|j|f~
we
re
f
use
to s
|
eep a
|
one again
_
idea;
however, cloning ex-spouses,
English
teachers,
or
Freddy Kruger
is
not.
>)
Take

My
Word
for
It
•
Use
a
semicolon
between
main
clauses
connected by conjunctive
adverbs such as
however,
nevertheless,
\j%
\
Pl
Qce
semicolons outside
clos-
moreover,
for
example,
and
consequently.
^ÊÊL
in
9
q

uotation
marks. For exam-
The
Colon:
What
a Party
Animal
Even
though
the
semicolon and
the
colon walk alike and talk alike, they are
not
alike.
Unlike those annoying twins Patty and Cathy,
the
colon and
the
semicolon are
not
interchangeable. Here's how
to
use
the
colon.
•
Use
a
colon before

a
list.
Example:
The new ice-cream parlor offered
a
choice of the following flavors of
the
month:
chicken
fat
ripple, pork and beans, and prime
rib
chip.
l\k
Partit:
Tools
of
theTrade
9
Quoth
the Maven
V/
Often, the
word
following
is
used
to introduce a list.
Take
My

Word
for
It
Place
colons outside closing
quotation
marks.
•
Use a colon before a long quotation, especially
a
formal one.
Example:
Abraham Lincoln
said:
"Four score
and
seven years ago our fathers brought forth
upon this continent a new nation, conceived in
liberty and dedicated to the proposition
that
all
men are created equal."
•
Use a colon before part of a sentence
that
explains
what has just been stated.
Example:
Life
is a series of rude

awakenings:
It
is
what happens to you while you are making
other plans.
•
Use a colon after the salutation of
a
business letter.
Examples:
Dear Mr. President:, To Whom It May Concern:
•
Use a colon to distinguish chapter from verse in a biblical citation, hours from
minutes, titles from subtitles.
Example:
Song
of
Songs
4:15
Semi-Tough
Add semicolons and colons as needed to complete each sentence.
1.
Old postal carriers never die they just lose their zip.
2.
Documented
sightings
of UFOs go back a long time in fact, the first
sightings
were reported in 1896.
3.

Woodrow Wilson appears on the $100,000 bill Grover Cleveland appears on
the $1,000 bill.
4.
There are four dimensions width length
depth
and time.
5.
Old
magicians
never die they just lose their hare.
6. Here's a fascinating fact about the writer Mark Twain Halley's Comet appeared
when he was born in
1835
and
again
when he died, in 1910.
Chapter
16:
Punctuation:
Commas
Are
Our
Friends
215
Answers
1.
Old postal carriers never die; they just lose their zip.
2.
Documented sightings of UFOs go back a long time; in fact, the
first

sightings
were reported in 1896.
3.
Woodrow Wilson appears on the $100,000 bill; Grover Cleveland appears on
the $1,000 bill.
4.
There are four dimensions:
width,
length,
depth,
and time.
5.
Old magicians never die; they just lose their hare.
6. Here's a fascinating fact about the writer Mark Twain: Halley's
Comet
appeared
when he was born in
1835,
and
again
when he died, in 1910.
Quotation
Marks: Quote/Unquote
Nothing spices up your writing like a few juicy quotations. Just consider
what
a
letter
would be like
without
a little

dialogue—as
dry as rice cakes. Here's how to use these
cute
little partners in crime.
•
Use quotation marks to set off a speaker's exact words.
Example:
"Is
that
person a man or a woman?" we asked.
•
Use quotation marks to set off the titles of short works such as poems,
essays,
songs,
short stories, and magazine articles.
Example:
"The Rime of the Ancient Mariner"
•
Use
single
quotation marks to set off
quoted material or the titles of short
jgm^
/H*
"^
works within a quotation enclosed by
^5*>v
/
Quoth the
Maven

—
double quotation marks.
\$T
Place
P
eriod
s
and commas
Example:
As the wit said, "'Health' is the
slowest possible rate of dying."
•
Use quotation marks to set off
a
defin-
ition.
Example:
The word
karaoke
means "So
you think you can
sing?
Think
again."
inside
of the end
quotation
mark;
place
colons and

semicolons
out-
side
of the end
quotation
mark.
Question
marks and exclamation
marks
go inside or outside of the
end
quotation
mark, depending
on the meaning.
216
Part
4:
Tools
of
the
Trade
A
Little Dabba Do Ya
Add quotation marks and commas as needed to make sense of the following joke:
There once was a farmer who was
raising
three
daughters on his own. He was very
concerned about their well-being and always did his best to watch out for
them.

On one particular evening, all
three
girls
were
going
out on dates. The farmer
greeted each young suitor at the door holding his shotgun to show who was
boss.
The doorbell rang and the first of the boys arrived. The farmer answered the
door and the lad
said
Hi my name's Joe
I'm here to see Flo.
We're
going
to the show.
Is
she ready to go?
The father looked him over and sent the kids on their
way.
The
next
lad arrived
and
said
My
name's Eddie.
I'm here to see Betty.
We're
gonna get some spaghetti.

Do you know if
she's
ready?
The father felt this one was okay so off the two kids
went.
The final young man
arrived
and the farmer opened the door. The boy began
Hi my name's Chuck and the farmer shot him.
Answer
There once was a farmer who was
raising
three
daughters on his own. He was very
concerned about their well-being and always did his best to watch out for
them.
On one particular evening, all
three
girls
were
going
out on dates. The farmer
greeted each young suitor at the door holding his shotgun to show who was
boss.
The doorbell rang and the first of the boys arrived. The farmer answered
the door and the lad
said,
"Hi, my name's Joe,
I'm here to see Flo.
Chapter

16:
Punctuation:
Commas
Are
Our
Friends
217
We're
going to the show.
Is
she ready to go?"
The father looked him over and sent the kids on their way. The
next
lad arrived
and said,
"My
name's Eddie.
I'm here to see Betty.
We're
gonna get some spaghetti.
Do you know if
she's
ready?"
The father felt this one was okay, so off the two kids
went.
The final young man
arrived and the farmer opened the door. The boy began,
"Hi, my name's Chuck " and the farmer shot him.
Not
Separated

at Birth: The Dash and the
Hyphen
(and Let's Add the Ellipsis for Fun)
The dash and the hyphen are like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito: con-
fused
so often they are taken for each other. But like these two fine actors, the dash
and the hyphen are not the same, no sireee.
•
A
hyphen
is one click on the keyboard: -
•
A
dash
is two clicks on the keyboard: —
•
An ellipsis is
three
spaced periods:
Therefore, the dash is twice as long as the
hyphen. That's not all; the dash and hyphen
have totally different uses. Not to mention
the ellipsis.
Strictly
Speaking
You could make it
through
life
fine
and dandy

without
a
dash,
but you'd be the poorer for it.
Like
argyle
socks,
the dash shows
flair
and style. It creates
rhythm
and emphasis in your
writing.
The
Dash:
Long and Lean
Basically,
the dash is used to show emphasis. Here's how:
•
Use a dash to show a sudden change of thought.
Example:
An
archaeologist—of
course I don't mean
you—is
a person whose
career lies in ruins.
218
ParU:
Tools

of
ttieïrade
•
Use a dash before a summary of
what
is stated in the sentence.
Example:
Avoiding work, getting liposuction, becoming a finalist in the George
Hamilton Cocoa Butter
Open—everything
depends on
that
trust
fund.
The Hyphen: Short and
Sweet
The hyphen, in contrast, is used to show a break in words.
•
Use a hyphen to show a word break at the end of
a
line.
Example:
When
you finish The
Complete
Idiots
Guide
to Grammar and
Style,
Sec-

ond
Edition,
your
written
work will be as sharp as your appearance.
•
Use a hyphen in certain compound nouns.
Example:
great-grandmother
•
Use hyphens in fractions and in compound numbers from twenty-one to ninety-
nine.
Examples:
one-half, sixty-six
The
Ellipsis:
Dot, Dot,
Dot
The
ellipsis,
in contrast, indicates a break in continuity.
•
Use an ellipsis to show
that
you have deleted words or sentences from a
passage
you
are quoting.
TON\
Danger,

Will
Robinson
Don't use an ellipsis to
show
that
words have been
omit-
ted
from
the beginning of a
sen-
tence.
Just
omit
the words and
keep
right
on going.
Example:
Abraham Lincoln
said:
"Four score
and
seven years ago our fathers brought
forth a new nation, conceived in liberty and
dedicated to the proposition
that
all men are
created equal."
•

Use an ellipsis to show a pause or interruption.
Example:
"No," I
said.
"I I need my space."
Parentheses and Brackets: Bosom Buddies
Like
hot
dogs
and heartburn, parentheses and brackets always come in pairs. But
unlike
tube
steaks and burps, parentheses and brackets are not at all the same.
Chapter
16:
Punctuation:
Commas
Are
Our
Friends
219
•
These are parentheses: ( )
•
These are brackets:
[
]
You use parentheses much more often than you use brackets. Follow these rules for
using
these marks of punctuation correctly.

(Parentheses)
Use
parentheses to set off
nonessential
information. In essence, the information in
the parentheses is a nonessential modifier; it
gives
the reader additional information
that's by no means crucial.
•
Use parentheses to enclose additional information in a sentence.
Example:
Isn't a
thesaurus
an ancient reptile
with
an excellent vocabulary (see
Chapter
16)?
•
Use parentheses to enclose numbers or letters.
Example:
Recipe for a great day: (1) Drive to the
mall;
(2)
Whip
out the charge
card;
(3) Shop 'til you drop.
[Brackets]

Use
brackets for editorial clarification. And editorial clarification only.
•
Use brackets to enclose a comment
that
interrupts a direct quotation.
Example:
She
said,
"I helped Richard
with
his memos [in fact, she
wrote
them
all]
when he was pressed for time."
Slash
and
Burn
This is a
slash
(/).
It's like a
Green
Acres
TV marathon; you don't need it often, but
when you do, nothing else will fit the bill.
•
Use
slashes

to separate lines of poetry. Leave a space before and after the
slash
to show when the line of poetry ends.
Example:
The opening of Robert Frost's poem "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy
Evening"
goes
like this: "Whose woods these are / I think I know, / His house is
in
the
village,
though. / He will not see me stopping here / To watch his woods
fill
up
with
snow."
220
Part
<t:
Tools
of
the
Trade
•
Use slashes to show choice.
Example:
Be sure to use the right
temperature
scale (Fahrenheit/Centigrade).
•

Use slashes in fractions or formulas.
Example:
Vz,
3
4
Apostrophes
The apostrophe (') is used in
three
ways:
•
To show possession (ownership)
•
To show plural forms
•
To show where a
letter
or number has been
omitted
This is a snap in speech, but in writing it does present difficulties. This is especially
true
where the
three
different uses of the apostrophe overlap. The worst offenders
are
butchers who sell "pork chop's" or "hamburger's." It's still another reason to
become a grammarian or a vegetarian.
In the meantime, here are the rules for using apostrophes.
1.
Use an apostrophe to show possession.
•

With
singular nouns not ending in
s,
add an apostrophe and s.
Examples:
girl,
girl's
manuscript; student, student's ideas
•
With
singular nouns ending in
s,
add an apostrophe and s.
Examples:
Charles, Charles's book; hostess, hostess's menu
If
the new word is hard to say, leave off the
s.
For example: James' book, Louis'
menu. You
won't
get arrested by the grammar police for using your brain.
•
With
plural nouns ending in
s,
add an apostrophe after the s.
Examples:
girls, girls'
manuscript; students, students' ideas

•
With
plural nouns not ending in
s,
add an apostrophe and s.
Examples:
women, women's books; mice, mice's tails
Chapter
16:
Punctuation:
Commas
Are
Our
Friends
221
2.
Use an apostrophe to show plural forms.
•
Use an apostrophe and s to show the plural of
a
letter.
Example:
Mind your p's and
q's.
•
Use an apostrophe and s to show the plural of
a
number.
Example:
Computers will be even more important in the late 1990's.

•
Use an apostrophe and s to show the plural of
a
word referred to as a word.
Example:
There are too many distracting like's and urn's in her speech.
3.
Use an apostrophe to show where a let-
ter or number has been
omitted.
•
To show
that
letters have been left
out of contractions.
Examples:
can't,
won't,
I'll
•
To show
that
numbers have been
left out of
a
date.
Examples:
the 70s, the '90s
You Could Look It Up
Contractions

are two
words combined. When you
contract words, add an apostro-
phe in the
space
where the
let-
ters
have been taken out.
Example:
does
+ not = doesn't
Danger,
Will Robinson
Don't
confuse contractions
with
possessive
pronouns. Study this list.
Contraction
Possessive
Pronoun
it's (it is) its
you're (you are) your
they're (they are)
their
who's
(who is) whose
Once
More,

Dear
Friends
Rewrite each phrase to use an apostrophe.
Example:
the mood of my sister my
sister's
mood
1.
the talents of
Matt
Damon
2.
the courage of the police officer
222
ParU:
Tools
of
theTrâde
3.
the liberation of women
4.
the union of the steelworkers
5.
the books of Laurie Rozakis
6. the wages of the waiters
Answers
1.
Matt
Damon's talents
2

the police officer's courage
3.
women's liberation
4.
steelworkers' union
5.
Laurie Rozakis' books
6. waiters' wages
The
Least
You Need to Know
•
Punctuation helps convey the meaning of your sentences to your readers.
•
Between sentences, the most common mark of punctuation is the period; within
sentences,
the most common mark is the comma.
•
Semicolons separate complete sentences; colons introduce
lists.
•
Hyphens separate word parts; dashes separate sentence parts or sentences.
•
Godzilla is frightening; punctuation isn't.